Elizabeth (Lisa) Dewey became DLA Piper's full-time Pro Bono Partner in 1999. As such, she advises and represents individuals and public interest organizations on a pro bono basis. She has represented a man on death row in Alabama, several federal criminal appeals, and families who lost loved ones in the Khobar Towers terrorist attack in 1996. She represented the Stethem family in a lawsuit against the government of Iran under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act; that suit, concerning the death of Robert Stethem in a terrorist aircraft hijacking, resulted in a $321 million judgment against the Government of Iran. Ms. Dewey has represented refugees seeking asylum in the US and several individuals in family law, juvenile, and housing matters. She has also done civil rights work and appellate work in suits concerning the admissions policies of the University of Michigan.

Ms. Dewey cultivates DLA Piper's strategic thinking on pro bono, including the vision for DLA Piper's US pro bono program, including over 1,500 lawyers. She also serves as the Assistant Director for New Perimeter, DLA Piper's nonprofit affiliate dedicated to global pro bono work.

As Pro Bono Partner, Ms. Dewey also supervises associates to ensure they receive the training, mentoring, and staff support they need to give pro bono clients high-quality legal services. She identifies and procures pro bono opportunities and ensures widespread participation in the pro bono programs on partner, Of Counsel, associate, and staff levels across DLA Piper's offices in 23 US cities. Ms. Dewey also develops and spearheads DLA Piper's signature on pro bono partnerships between DLA Piper, corporate clients, and legal service providers.

Her experience includes representing and counseling corporations and individuals in criminal investigations and federal jury trials in the areas of public corruption, mail fraud, money laundering, and health-care fraud. She has argued cases before the US Courts of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the District of Columbia, and the US District Court for the Middle District of Alabama. Ms. Dewey also counsels clients regarding development of corporate ethics and compliance programs. She has managed a diverse caseload that also includes copyright, legal ethics, personal injury, and contracts matters. In addition, she has represented a class of plaintiffs who filed suit against the District of Columbia for sexual harassment and retaliation under Title VII, as well as a government executive investigated and tried by the office of Independent Counsel Donald Smaltz.

She is also a member of DLA Piper's Hiring Committee.

Honors

• Named as one of the Greater Washington's Legal Elite (2005), Washington SmartCEO Magazine (August 2005)
• Co-Winner of the Washington Business Journal's Young Gun Award in the Top Washington Lawyers Edition (September 2004)

Teaching Experience

• Adjunct Professor of Law at the Washington College of Law, The American University, Externship Seminar; Government, Pro Bono, and Public Interest
• Legal Methods Instructor, Adjunct Faculty (September 1998-May 2000): Taught legal writing to first-year law students

Admissions

• District of Columbia
• Maryland
• United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
• United States District Court for the District of Columbia
• United States District Court for the District of Maryland
• United States Court of Appeals for Maryland
• United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit

Memberships

• American Bar Association
• District of Columbia Women's Bar Association
• AYUDA, Inc. (Honorary Board of Directors)
• DC Bar Civility Implementation Committee (2002)

Seminars

• "Creating a Pro Bono Culture in Mexico," speaker, American University's Washington College of Law, April 1, 2009
• "Corporate Social Responsibility: Law, Operations, and Strategy," panelist, Georgetown University Law Center (November 2008)
• "Staying Public: Survival Skills for a Lifetime Career in Public Service Law," speaker, The Washington College of Law, The American University (2008)
• "Embracing Pro Bono Community Clinics," speaker, Maryland Partners for Justice Conference (2008)
• "Trends in Pro Bono Staffing and Governance," speaker and facilitator, Pro Bono Institute (February 2008)
• "International Pro Bono," speaker and facilitator, Pro Bono Institute (March 2007)
• "Full-Time Pro Bono Partners," speaker and facilitator, Pro Bono Institute (March 2006)
• "Charting the Future: Strategic Pro Bono Business Planning," panelist, Pro Bono Institute (March 2006)
• "Making Your Mark…With Pro Bono," speech, Pro Bono Institute (February 2004)
• "The Power of Partnership," panelist, American Bar Association and National Legal Aid and Defender Association Equal Justice Conference (April 2003)
• "Developing Relationships with Legal Service Providers," panelist, Pro Bono Institute (February 2002)
• "Public Interest Opportunities," panelist, The Washington College of Law, The American University (2001, 2002)
• "Civility in the Legal Profession," panelist, The Washington College of Law, The American University (2001, 2002)

Clerk Information

• The Honorable Noel Anketell Kramer, District of Columbia Superior Court